Monthly Archives: November 2016

We hit the road again this fall, this time to Williamstown, Massachusetts, to visit the Williamstown Elementary School! Lola came along, of course, but this time she had to share the backseat with the newest member of the crew: Wren Mahala Rose Devlin!

Lola was convinced to share, and we made it safe and sound to the home of the wonderful Igoe family, who hosted us during our stay in Williamstown.

Here’s Kathleen Igoe, our host, wth Wren

We had a great night with the Igoes, who took us to a pre-Halloween chili party. In the morning we reported to the school to an auditorium packed with 4-6th graders.

After a Selkie tale and a quick reading from the book, we had a great Q & A and then broke into classroom groups. I like reading from Lost Children of The Far Islands, but I LOVE visiting classrooms!
We talked about Selkies, and magic, and WHAT IF…the magic words to begin any story…

What if there were people who could turn into seals? What if YOU could turn into an animal? What animal would you be?What if…and they were off!

I always love hearing the wild stories that kids can create on the spot, and this visit amazed me all over again. I heard a story about a kid waking up in a bunk bed in the shape of an elephant, and another one of a kid waking up grumpy because she was a unicorn yet again…There were crazy adventures of kids trying to try their new wings, or communicate in the shape of a seal, or resist eating their suddenly delicious-looking younger sister…

What a great day! And although it was almost Halloween, we did get a bit of gorgeous foliage before we had to head back to the city. Thank you Cecelia Hirch and Kathleen Judge for making this visit possible, and thanks to the students at Williamstown Elementary for making it so fun!